Spring-gun



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT GEMUNDER. OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

SPRING-GUN.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 19,086, dated January 12, 1858.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT GEMUNDER, of Springfield, in the county of Hampden, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have in vented a new and Improved Mode of Con structing SpringsGuns for Destroying IVild Animals and other Purposes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

My invention consists, in attaching to the v muzzle of a gun or pistol barrel a cylindrical cap, fitting upon the barrel like the ring of a bayonet, (Figures l and G.) To t-he outer extremity of this cylinder a strong spiral wire is attached, in the manner indicated in Fig. l, a, or by any other suitable method, the end being sharpened to a point, so that it may penetrate and be screwed into the meat or other bait by which the prey is to be attracted. The diameter of the spiral must be greater than the bore of the gun, to allow the ball to pass through it when the gun is discharged, (Fig. 2.) The cylinder is adjusted to the barrel by a guiding pin upon the barrel (Fig. 3, Ca) moving in a corresponding slit in the cylinder (Fig. l, b.) The barrel is furnished with a cone, 0n which the percussion cap is placed (Fig. 3 b.)

7The gun is discharged by means of the following arrangement: The hammer (Fig. 3, c) is attached to the under side of a thin strip or spring of steel, (Fig. 3, cl,) the end of the spring most remote from the hammer being fastened to a projection or shoulder of the barrel, as seen in Fig. 3, e. At the other end, the spring extends far enough beyond the hammer to allow the lever, hereafter described, to be placed under it. It then curves upward and over, to form a finger rest by which to raise it in setting or cooking the gun, (Fig. 3, f.)

To set or cock the gun, a lever is placed behind the curve, at right angles with the barrel when at rest, and moving upon a flat surface on the side of the barrel, cut away so as to receive it, (Fig. 3, g.) The fulcrum of the lever is a screw or pin (Fig. 4, 05,) fixed into a projection or shoulder of the barrel, rising from it, behind the cone, (Fig. 3, 7L.) At its upper end the lever projects or bends over the barrel, to form a. rest for the hammer spring, when the gun is set, (Fig. 4, b.) At the lower end of the lever a rod is attached, to connect it with the baiting cylinder, Figs. 5 and 6.) This rod extends along the barrel, and its outer end is bent back in the form of an oblong hook, (Fig. 5.) through which a thumb screw (Fig. l, c) lattached to-the cylinder is admitted edgewise, and the thumb screw is then turned across the hook, fastening it, as seen in Fig. 6. Then the gun is set, the hammer spring is raised, and the upper end of the lever placed beneath it. This draws the rod backward so that the hooked end touches the thumb screw.

The gun is discharged by the animal seizing the bait and attempting to withdraw it. The cylinder is drawn toward t-he muzzle, the thumb screw taking the lever rod with it, thus disengaging the upper end of the lever from the spring and letting the hammed fall on the cap. The ball is discharged through the spiral wire, with force sufficient to pass through the bait and kill the prey. To regulate the force necessary to discharge the gun, I place a setting screw behind the lower or longer arm of the lever, passing it through a project-ion from the barrel, (Fig. 6, a.) This determines the extent to which the upper end of the lever shall set under the hammer spring, and consequently the force necessary to withdraw it.

In loading the gun and attaching the bait to the cylinder it will be more safe and convenient to take the cylinder off.

The barrel, with its several projections or shoulders, may be cast whole, and both that and the baiting cylinder may be of malleable iron. The spring, cone, and lever should be of steel and the setting and thumb screws of any suitable metal.

In baiting the gun, itwill be well to screw the bait well up to the muzzle to prevent the smell of the powder from escaping, as most animals instinctively avoid it. Still further to conceal or disguise the gun, as well as to keep it dry, it may be placed within a covering of india rubber or the stuffed skin of an animal or bird or other device suitable for the purpose.

The breech end of the gun should be furnished with some contrivance for fastening it, when set, as seen in Fig. 3, la.

Description of #gares-Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the cylinder. Fig. 2, shows the muzzle of the gun, as seen through the spiral baiting wire. Fig. 3, shows the 0 parts land adjustments,

barrel, with its projections, together With the cone and hammer spring. Fig. 4. gives a surface and an edgeWise View of the level. Fig. 5. is the discharging rod. F ig. 6. is the Whole gun in perspective.

/Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent isl. The cylindrical cap, With its spiral Wire for attaching the bait, and with its substantially as hereinbefore described, and as Shown in the drawings.

2. The use of the cylindrical cap, in combination, With the other parts of the gun,

for the purpose of sustaining the bait, and l of discharging the gun, by means of the discharging rod and lever, substantially as hereinbefore described, and as shown in the drawings.

ALBERT GEMUNDER.

Vitnesses:

GEORGE /VALKER, L. B. DENNETT. 

